Special officers rule begins in 367 panchayats in Vikarabad

Vikarabad: Sarpanches and ward members of over 367 village panchayats became ex-sarpanches and ex-members with effect from Wednesday evening as the state government, by orders, replaced them with special officers as their tenure has come to an end.

The panchayat sarpanches handed over files to the panchayhat secretaries on Wednesday evening itself. There were eight to 14 members in each panchayat. They had elected upa-sarpanch through indirect elections. The special officers’ administration replaces the rule by elected sarpanches in panchayat elections held five years ago.

With the creation of 198 more panchayats the number of panchayats in the district has gone up to 565. The government created a new panchayat of a habitat having at least a population of 500. The new panchayats will function from rented premises. The officials have searched for whether any government building is available for running the new panchayats. At many places, the panchayat offices are functioning from government schools.